Shtetl

The well-known American set designer Boris Aronson was born in Kiev and came of age during the Russian Revolution. Initially, he worked in various media: painting, sculpture, and costume design, as well as scenic design. While in Moscow, he embraced the constructivist style. He left the Soviet Union and, after a short time in Berlin, settled on the Lower East Side of New York City in 1923. He began designing sets and costumes for the more experimental Yiddish theaters and then, in the early 1930s, began to work on Broadway. He was responsible for the design of major Broadway productions, including The Crucible, The Diary of Anne Frank, Fiddler on the Roof, Cabaret, Follies, and A Little Night Music. He won the Tony Award for set design six times.